The Perfect Contrast
by inogirl13
Summary: My first clear attempt at fluff. Kinda short, but sweet to me anyway ShikaIno Please review and tell me if you understood it!


"What's a wile, Shikamaru?" She turned on her stomach, propping her head up on her hands. Shikamaru sighed and gazed into the clouds, his hands behind his head. All he wanted was peace and quiet on his favorite grassy hill. Ino had found him about an hour ago and, being true to herself, hadn't shut up the entire time. He glanced at her for a second, "Why?" His voice was smooth and calm, so her voice was a great contrast with a high-pitched, hyper tone when she chirped, "Well, Sakura was telling me when to use my 'feminine wiles'. I know what feminine means, but the forehead girl already thinks she's better than me, so I didn't want to say I knew what it meant. I just agreed with her…and I figured, you're the smartest ninja in Konoha, so you know…right?" She sat up and pushed herself against the tree behind them on the hill. Shikamaru sighed and figured he could only get rid of her if he told her what she wanted to know. He sat across from her; he didn't really mean to, but their knees sort of touched and Shikamaru's hand decided to place itself on Ino's leg. "Uhh…Shika? Space?" He groaned and moved a little away from her. "Okay, if I tell you, will you leave me alone?" She leaned forward and smiled, "No promises." _"What was with her?"_ She never got that close to him unless she had to in training. _"She really needs to back up"'_He kept saying, but why did his stomach make these jumping feelings whenever her hot breath reached his lips? He felt he had waited too long and quickly recovered himself, "Ino? Space?" She pursed her lips and leaned back against the tree. Her tone turned bitter, "Besides, why would you _want _me to leave?" Shikamaru heaved a sigh, "Because, you're a troublesome woman, Ino. I just want quiet. If you can be a quiet girl, you can stay." Ino crossed her arms and cocked her head. "So, that's your type? Quiet?" She eyed him with a devious glare. "What are you talking about?" He rolled his eyes. "The kind of girl you want." He sat next to her and laid his back on the grass, crossing his arms behind his head. "You know what type I like." Ino caught a hint of spearmint as he laid down. She looked down at Konoha over the hill, avoiding eye contact, not wanting to accept the fact that he smelled wonderful. "No…I-I don't." Shikamaru looked up at her. He didn't know if it was the way the wind blew her golden hair back or the way the sun made her eyes twinkle, or just a divine combination, but she looked absolutely calm and ethereal: so different from her usual, loud self. Shikamaru guessed nobody in the village ever saw her like this. Did she act like this on dates? Was she always this beautiful?

After a few seconds, Ino looked down at him and he quickly stared back up at the sky, grasping for the point he was making. "I want an ordinary girl. Not too ugly, not too pretty. Not dumb, but not a genius. You know, average." Ino wrinkled her nose and snorted. "Ew. That's so…boring. But whatever. Good luck with that. There aren't any girls in Konoha like that. Everyone has something special about them." Shikamaru sighed. "Well it's not _your _type, so don't worry. And besides, I already know who my girl is." Ino could feel an ache in her heart, but decided to show a slight smile to Shikamaru. "Who!?" She sat up on her knees beside Shikamaru. "Oh, you don't know her." Ino growled playfully, "I know everyone!" Shikamaru laughed. Ino had never seen, or heard, him laugh. He had a beautiful full-fledged smile. She'd only seen it once, when they won their first mission as a team. She'd even told him to smile like that more often, but he probably didn't take it very seriously because she added "lazy ass" at the end.

"I thought you said you didn't want different."

"Didn't you just say everyone in Konoha is the same: interesting? So if she's different, then she's the opposite of the girls in Konoha." Ino pouted her lip and unconsciously started playing with the net of Shikamaru's shirt. For some reason, he didn't bother to stop her, "Damn, Shikamaru, you are the smartest ninja," She giggled quietly.

"So, will you tell me?"

"Will you leave?"

"No." They stared hard for a long time before Ino finally broke the silence, taking on the face of a toddler. "Shika, am I pretty?" Shikamaru was a little shocked by this—actually more than a little. He would have never in a million years thought that Ino would have self esteem issues. She always carried herself with such confidence. Of course he thought she was pretty, more than pretty—much more, but if he told her that, he'd expose his long kept secret. He wasn't going to tell her like that. On the other hand, he couldn't even imagine her face if he told her she was ugly. She would probably fume off. But that was all he wanted—for her to leave. He just couldn't bring himself to it. "Ino, you're very pretty. Any guy would be lucky to have you." Her eyes brightened a little. "Even you?" Shikamaru furrowed his brow—where did that come from? He rubbed his temple and sighed, trying to conjure an answer in his head. She interrupted before he could answer, thank God.

"Are you in love with whoever that girl is?" He looked up at the clouds, praying for some kind of answer, or better, a way to get out of this horrid situation.

"I don't know, Ino." She wrinkled her nose and squinted her eyes.

"Have you _ever_ been in love?"

"No..." She lifted her finger nail painted hand to cover her mouth and gasped.

"Shika! You don't know what it feels like to be in _love_??!" Shikamaru rolled his eyes.

"Blasphemy, I know." He said sarcastically. Ino batted her lashes and hugged herself lightly.

"Being in love…is so incredible. It's when…one touch from the person sends shivers through your whole body—" She placed a hand on Shikamaru's arm and it felt like an extra voltage shot was sent up his spine. "—and then when you get home, hours later, you can still feel their touch. And it's when your so close to them that you can see deep into their eyes—" Ino leaned forward and positioned her body mere inches away from Shikamaru's. "—and feel their heart beating faster than a hummingbird's wings. And—" She stared at his lips with a fiery intensity. "—knowing deep down that their heart is beating only for you." She broke her attention from his lips and looked up into his eyes. They were a beautiful grayish green. Like the sea after a storm. Such a great contrast from her bright baby blue beauties that Shikamaru found himself staring into. Was it him or was she moving closer? Her bottom lip barely met his top one when she whispered curiously, "Is _that_ a wile, Shikamaru?" He blinked rapidly and shook his head as she backed up. "What I just did, was that a wile?" She cocked her head. He sighed, "...Basically." She stood up. "Cool. Thanks, Shika." She started to walk down the hill. Just before Shikamaru knelt back down on the grass, she turned around, "Shika?"

"Hn?"

"That girl—whoever she is—is the luckiest girl in the village."

And as Shikamaru laid back on the hill, replacing her perfect shadowed figure with the bright blue of the sky, he whispered, "You are…but I'm luckier."


End file.
